Despite struggling early against an on-point Bowling, Voelker used one crisp knee and a flurry of punches to down Bowling for the second-straight time.

The bout served as the featured contest for Friday night’s “Strikeforce Challengers 17: Voelker vs. Bowling III” event, which took place at The Pearl at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.

The main card of the event, the promotion’s first-ever in its new Sin City home, aired on Showtime.

Bowling took the center early in the opening round, and landed an early punch and kick to the gut. But Voelker answered quickly, and the two traded shots in the pocket for the duration of the frame. Each fighter had their moments with powerful hooks to the jaw and a crushing Bowling kick to the body. Bowling also scored a late takedown, but it was his crisp punching and well-timed kicks that really earned him the round.

Of course, the fight couldn’t be without drama, as a poke to Bowling’s eye brought back memories of the first matchup. But Bowling came out on fire on the restart and further cemented the frame.

Voelker pressed forward in the second and landed a few early punches before being brought to the floor. He scrambled back to the feet, but Bowling’s pressure was relentless against the cage. When he finally let up, it cost him.

As Bowing tried to back away from the clinch, Voelker drive a right knee up the middle and blasted his opponent in the jaw. He wobbled back, and Voelker swarmed with punches for the finish, which came at the 2:16 mark of the second round.

Voelker (24-8 MMA, 4-1 SF) is now 4-1 in his past five fights. Bowling (9-2 MMA, 2-2 SF) falls to 1-2 in his past three contests.
Cole outlasts Jordan in heavyweight action

Cole landed first with his hands, and Jordan stuck out his tongue and smiled. Cole soon landed another crisp flurry, and Jordan closed the distance and earned a trip. Jordan pounced with punches and locked up the back as Cole tried to roll free. Unfortunately, he couldn’t hold the spot, and Cole quickly reversed the action and moved back to the feet.

Cole settled in as the round wore on, and he landed a takedown of his own, but Jordan worked back to his feet and landed a few crisp rights in a few back-and-forth exchanges. A late takedown impressed for Jordan, but Cole controlled much of the frame.

In the second, Cole landed an early knee, and Jordan smiled again. This time, he even shouted, “Yeah!” But he was also slowing a touch as Cole continued to press forward. A surprising Jordan Superman punch led to a few direct-hit hooks, but Cole simply closed the distance and brought the fight to the floor. A few driving knees to the ribs followed. Jordan escaped to the feet, but it was only to eat more knees.

In the final round, Jordan continued to move forward, but his gastank was obviously depleted. Coming in on short notice for an injured Lavar Johnson, Jordan had done just about all that he could have been expected to do. A last-ditch effort at a choke slipped easily off the mark, and Cole finished the fight in top position. Referee Steve Mazzagatti watched closely, but Cole did just enough to prevent a standup and cruise to a unanimous-decision win.

Cole (19-9-1 MMA, 1-1 SF) snaps a two-fight slide with the result. Jordan (10-3 MMA, 0-1 SF) falls to just 1-2 in his past three fights but likely earned another look after doing the promotion a solid.

Cason taps to St. Preux’s first-round assault

Light heavyweights Ovince St. Preux and Joe Cason were expected to deliver fireworks.

They did.

After a few tense moments on the feet to open the action, it was Cason who made the first mistake, ducking in for a shot just as St. Preux was firing a kick. The blow wobbled Cason, and St. Preux pounced, pushing his shaky opponent to the floor and firing off punches.

St. Preux showed no signs of relenting, and Cason tapped out from the assault 72 seconds after the fight began.

St. Preux (11-4 MMA, 5-0 SF) is now riding an eight-fight win streak and appears primed for a featured contest on Strikeforce’s “Arena Series” events. Cason (8-1 MMA, 0-1 SF) loses for the first time as a professional.

Kaufman out-toughs Carmouche en route to decision win

In the night’s lone female contest, former champ Sarah Kaufman grinded her way to a unanimous-decision win over a game Liz Carmouche in a key 135-pound affair.

The two engaged quickly at the opening bell, and Carmouche fired off a flurry of quick punches. But Kaufman moved into the clinch and pressed her against the cage. Carmouche circled off and tried to do the same but ended up giving up her back on a perfectly defended trip attempt.

Carmouche escaped the position relatively easily, and the two jockeyed for dominance on the inside with knees, punches and footstomps. On the break, both fighters scored from distance. However, it was Kaufman who seemed to be a little more effective.

In the second, Kaufman opened with a few clean punches. Carmouche never backed down, but Kaufman appeared to gain confidence as she began to mix in kicks on her combinations. Carmouche continued to offer return fire, but her nose was bloodied from the shots she was taking in the meantime.

Carmouche tried to grab a kick in order to bring the fight to the floor, but Kaufman remained upright. Carmouche kept the fight interesting by continually pressing forward with punches and takedown attempts, but she simply couldn’t net the results she needed.

Carmouche continued to look for anything she could in the final frame, but the pattern for the fight was already well established. Even a Superman punch off the cage for Carmouche wasn’t enough to turn the tide, and Kaufman continued to pour on the damage until the final round. In the end, it was enough to score a unanimous decision, 30-27 on all three cards.

“I’m happy with my performance,” Kaufman said following the win. “Liz is not an easy fight for anyone. She is obviously strong and very strong in the positions that she uses. I had to be careful that I didn’t get stuck up against the cage too much.

“I really wanted to clear that distance and use my strikes and use my length. I really did that in the second and third rounds. I listened to my coaches and did what they asked of me and fought a strong fight.”

After losing for the first time as a professional, Kaufman (14-1 MMA, 5-1 SF) has now earned two-straight victories and appears primed for a potential shot at regaining the title she lost in October 2010. Carmouche (5-2 MMA, 1-2 SF) has now dropped two-straight outings but continues to impress with her durability and determination.
Amagov edges Stallings in exciting split

In the night’s first main-card matchup middleweights Adlan Amagov and Ron Stallings combined for a rousing affair heavy on toe-to-toe exchanges.

Stallings took the center early, as Amagov remained cocked and patient. The first real exchange saw Amagov land a crisp right and a front kick that caught his opponent’s attention. A few more fast-paced kicks, including a spinning shot to the ribs, also landed as the round wore on. Stalling gave chase but offered little in the way of offense.

The pair moved into the clinch in the final moment, and Amagov earned a trip into side control. Another toss ended the round with Amagov in clear control.

Stallings opened the second with a few slapping low kicks, but Amagov immediately returned fire. The hands flew freely for a bit before the two moved into the clinch The position remained neutral until Amagov scampered away. Amagov then scored two textbook tosses and unleashed a flurry of left hands. Stallings scrambled up and unleashed a series of knees that signaled the start of a toe-to-toe patch of fireworks that lasted until the final bell. Stallings got he best of it, but Amagov had more strong moments throughout.

Stallings opened up aggressively in the third, and more knees lead to an early takedown. Stallings controlled from side control, and a few elbows gave birth to a hematoma on Amagov’s forehead. Stallings threatened with a straight armbar but advanced to mount. However, Amagov quickly scrambled up and back to his feet.

WIth both fighters breathing deep and Stallings nose bleeding, the two powered through the final moments. Amagov received a few warnings for grabbing the fence, and his corner was also warned several times for refusing to remain on the stool. Still, a potentially costly point was not deducted, and the two swung furiously until the final bell.

After a tentative start, both fighters were rewarded with a round of applause at the conclusion of 15 minutes.

After both fighters through heavy shots in the pocket, an early right hand seemed to stun Lanham, and he was rocked several more times by uppercuts as he looked to score a takedown and slow the action. A second effort did see Lanham work to half-mount, and he earned a few seconds of rest after losing a mouthpiece.

Lanham landed a few punches from top, but Cook was able to scramble back up to the feet after missing with an armbar attempt. It was just the beginning of the back-and-forth action.

Cook again turned to the uppercut, and just as it looked like Lanham was going to go down, he returned several shots of his own and appeared to turn the tide. But in the final seconds, a crisp punch in the clinch saw Lanham hit the deck, and Cook pounced with punches that earned a just stoppage with only one second remaining on the opening-round clock.

Cook (12-3 MMA, 1-0 SF) runs his win streak to five fights. Meanwhile, Lanham (3-1 MMA, 0-1 SF) loses for the first time as a professional.

Smith clocks Lagman in second

Middleweight Anthony Smith found it hard to pull the trigger early in his contest with opponent Ben Lagman, but when he did, he made a strong early claim for “Knockout of the Night.”

In the opening frame, both fighters looked content to stand and trade, but Lagman remained the more active competitor, mixing in kicks and punches from various angles as Smith appeared to look for a homerun shot. Smith had a slick foot sweep late in the first, but Lagman popped back up his feet without taking much damage.

The moderate pace left the crowd calling for more action, and they would soon get it.

In the second, Smith came out a bit more aggressively, and a flying knee pushed Lagman into the cage. As he rebounded off the barrier, Smith blasted him with a straight right hand to the chin that left Lagman cold on the floor. Referee Josh Rosenthal pulled Smith away just 33 seconds into the frame.

After opening his career just 5-6, Smith (13-7 MMA, 1-0 SF) has now won eight times in his past nine fights. Seven-time King of the Cage veteran Lagman (6-2 MMA, 0-1 SF) falls to just 1-2 in his past three outings.
Cooper swarms Watson, earns second-round tapout

In lightweight action, grappling specialist Bill Cooper overwhelmed the previously undefeated Maka Watson with a non-stop barrage of submission attempts for finally earning the tapout in the second frame.

Watson was game early, stuffing a takedown attempt at the opening bell. But Cooper persisted with his forward progress and scrambled to the back in the early going. After Cooper violently dragged the action to the mat, Watson proved capable in defense, as he defended earnest rear-naked choke attempts for more than three minutes. Watson broke the hold and nearly locked out an armbar in the closing seconds, but Watson survived until the second.

He’s immediately find himself in trouble again.

Watson again defended the initial rush from Cooper, but “The Grill” jumped the back and locked in both hooks. This time, the arm locked quickly under the chin, and Watson tapped as Cooper again pulled the action to the floor. The end came at the 2:39 mark of the second frame.

Cooper (2-0 MMA, 1-0 SF) remains undefeated two contests into his young MMA career. Watson (4-1 MMA, 0-1 SF) sees a four-fight win streak snapped as he loses for the first time as a professional.

Ford stuffs McLaughlin, cruises to decision win

In the night’s first preliminary card contest, Brian McLaughlin looked crisp early, landing a few solid kicks to the body of southpaw Sterling Ford. But after landing a solid takedown and briefly taking the back, McLaughlin slipped off but left his hips on the mat as Ford stood over him and delivered punches for the remainder of the frame.

Round two opened in similar fashion, but referee Kim Winslow didn’t let the action stay on the ground quite as long. McLaughlin was given a reprieve with a restart halfway in, but he looked fatigued, and Ford bloodied his nose with several crisp shots on the feet.

McLaughlin opened with a sense of urgency in the third, and a few more pounding body kicks echoed through the arena. But Ford refused to go to the ground and shucked off McLaughlin’s telegraphed takedown attempts. There were Superman punches and spinning backfists, but none landed for the desperate McLaughlin. Instead, Ford simply cruised on the outside, just a little bit quicker and a little bit fresher through the final bell.

When the scores were read, Ford was awarded a unanimous-decision win, 30-27, 29-28, 30-27.

Ford (13-4 MMA, 1-0 SF) extends his win streak to six fights. Meanwhile, McLaughlin (6-2 MMA, 0-1 SF) falls to just 1-2 in his past three fights, though both losing results came via decision.

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